ALEKS guide
ALEKS placement test:
what it covers and how to prepare
An adaptive assessment that decides your first college math course. Here is how the ALEKS PPL works, what is on it, and how to practice.
- How the assessment works
- The math it covers
- Practice problems and a prep plan
Practicing for the placement test?
Type a practice problem or snap a photo of one. igni walks you through it one hint at a time — you still do the math.
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What it is
What the ALEKS placement test actually is
ALEKS PPL (Placement, Preparation and Learning) is the math placement assessment many colleges use to decide which math course you start in. Like the rest of ALEKS it is adaptive: each question depends on how you answered the ones before it, and the questions are open-ended rather than multiple choice.
- 25 or fewerquestions, from arithmetic up to precalculus
- ~90 minMcGraw Hill’s estimate — your school may set its own limit
- Up to 5attempts offered, though your school decides how many you get
After your first attempt ALEKS builds you a personalized Prep and Learning Module from your results. Depending on your school’s policy you may need to spend time in it, wait a set period, or meet other conditions before you can retake the assessment and improve your placement — none of that is a universal ALEKS rule.
Why an accurate score matters. Placing too high puts you in a course where the basics are assumed, and that is a semester you pay for. Placing accurately and then improving through the Prep module is the safer route to the course you actually want.
Already placed, and starting an ALEKS course? Your next step is the Initial Knowledge Check — a different assessment that happens inside the course.
Easily confused
Placement test vs. Initial Knowledge Check
Students mix these up constantly. They run on the same ALEKS engine but they do different jobs.
| Placement test (PPL) | Initial Knowledge Check | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Before your first college math course | The first time you log in to an ALEKS course |
| What it decides | Which math course you can take | Where you start inside the course |
| Range | Arithmetic through precalculus | The topics of that one course |
| Retakes | Often, on terms your school sets | Progress Knowledge Checks follow automatically |
What it asks
What the placement test covers
The assessment can reach anywhere from basic arithmetic to precalculus, depending on how you answer. These are the areas worth refreshing before you sit it — our grouping of them, not an official ALEKS topic list.
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Arithmetic and percents
Fractions, decimals, order of operations, ratios and percent problems.
What is 35% of 240?
Practice this with igni → -
Equations and inequalities
Linear equations, absolute value, and solving and graphing inequalities.
|2x − 3| = 7
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Exponents, radicals and polynomials
Exponent rules, simplifying radicals, factoring and rational expressions.
√50 + 3√8
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Lines, functions and graphs
Slope, equations of lines, function notation, domain and range.
Domain of √(x − 4) / (x − 7)
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Exponentials and logarithms
Exponential growth, log rules and solving log equations — at the precalculus end of the assessment.
log2(x + 1) = 3
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Trigonometry
Right-triangle trig and unit circle basics, at the very top end of what the assessment reaches.
sin(5π/6) = ?
ALEKS trigonometry guide →
Practice
ALEKS placement practice problems
Practice problems in the ALEKS style — not real assessment questions. Work through one with igni: it checks each step you take and will not simply hand you the answer.
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Percents
A $68 jacket is on sale for 25% off. What is the sale price?
Solve it step by step -
Equations
Solve for x: (x + 2)/3 − (x − 1)/4 = 2
Solve it step by step -
Quadratics
Solve: 2x2 + 3x − 5 = 0
Solve it step by step -
Logarithms
Solve: log3(2x − 1) = 2
Solve it step by step
A plan
A simple way to prepare
1. Check your school’s rules first. Time limits, proctoring, calculators and retake policies differ from school to school, and your school’s placement page is the only authority on yours.
2. Refresh the foundations. Most points are won or lost on algebra basics — fractions, equations, exponents and factoring. Practice a few problems from each area above.
3. Sit it honestly. Work on paper, use only what your school allows, and do not rush. An accurate result is the goal.
4. Then use the Prep and Learning Module. If you want a higher placement, work through your module and use igni whenever a topic in it stops you. Then retake.
How it works
Practice a topic, checked line by line
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1
Upload your problem
Snap a photo, paste, or type any math problem you're stuck on.
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2
Keep solving
Receive one hint at a time to help you keep solving — never the final answer.
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3
Get it done
Complete the problem yourself and feel ready for the next one.
Work however you like. Solve on paper or on your device — after each step, type your work or snap a photo and igni tells you whether that line holds up before you build on it.
Where it fits
When to use igni (and when not to)
igni never gives you the final answer — it checks your steps, the way a tutor looking over your shoulder does. Even so, an assessment is meant to measure what you know on your own.
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Learning topics and homework
Get unstuck
Use igni whenever a learning topic or a practice problem stops you. You solve it; igni tells you which line broke.
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Knowledge Checks and placement
On your own
Answer honestly and follow your instructor’s or your school’s rules. An assessment is only useful if it measures what you can do unaided.
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Before an assessment
Warm up
Practise the topics you know are coming, so the result reflects what you really know and starts you in the right place.
Questions
Placement test prep FAQ
25 or fewer. McGraw Hill describes the PPL assessment as covering its topic set in 25 questions or fewer, and because it is adaptive the exact number depends on how you answer.
McGraw Hill says the assessment can be completed in about 90 minutes, which makes that a reasonable figure to plan around rather than a rule.
Any actual time limit is set by your school, not by ALEKS, so check your school’s placement page before you start.
Math from arithmetic through precalculus, including fractions, equations, exponents, functions, logarithms and some trigonometry. How far up it reaches depends on your answers.
Often, yes. McGraw Hill offers up to five assessment attempts, but your school decides how many of them you actually get.
Your school also decides what has to happen in between — time in the Prep and Learning Module, a waiting period, both, or neither. Sign in to ALEKS or check your school’s placement page to see where you stand.
No. The assessment is adaptive and generates questions from your own answers, so no fixed answer key exists. The reliable way to raise your score is to practice the topics and use the Prep and Learning Module.
Follow your school’s policy. ALEKS may put an on-screen calculator on certain questions, and that is usually the only one you are meant to use — do not assume an outside calculator is allowed.
No. The assessment should measure what you know on your own, and schools typically prohibit outside help. Use igni to prepare beforehand and to work through your Prep and Learning Module afterwards.
Still stuck on something? Talk to us.
Working through your Prep and Learning Module?
Snap the topic that is stopping you and solve it a step at a time.
- Works in any browser
- No card needed to start
- You still do the math
Not sure where your gaps are? Answer a few questions and igni builds a plan around the course you are in.